| |
| |
|
Marriage & Wedding Information |
|
Choosing a Wedding Reception and Banquet Facility
It's time to look for a banquet facility. Most clients end up deciding on a particular banquet facility for two specific reasons - they like how they were treated by the banquet sales staff and they fall in love with the facility when they walk through the doors. Those are both great reasons for going with specific venues. Here are some other things to consider when shopping for a banquet facility that may have drastic impacts on the success or failure of your wedding. The bar should be in the same room as dancing. Having a separate bar area will only lead to splitting your guests into separate areas and that is never good. If the banquet facility has more than one event running at the same time - how is the sound proofing between rooms? What type of event is in the next room to your wedding? A 50th anniversary or another wedding is ok, but if it's a high school prom, you may want to rethink your choice. If you are having a DJ and the next room has a band, that also should be taken into consideration. Your wedding cake should be located in an appropriate area in the room - it should not be set in front of mirrors (photographers have a hard time with that) and it should be accessible, but not in a place that can easily be bumped by one of the children as they run around your reception. Of course, when it comes time for cake cutting if the banquet facility can roll the cake to the center of the dance floor - that's even better. Everyone can see, and the cake can be quickly removed afterwards. A well trained banquet staff will take care of certain details for you - they will be there to guide your wedding party during introductions. Someone will be assigned to take your flowers from you and the wedding party after you are introduced. For introductions, there should be a clear (and straight) path wide enough for two people to walk arm in arm to the dance floor and to the head table. If you visit a banquet facility - you should look at the layout and see if you and your partner can walk together through the tables and onto the dance floor. You should imagine the room filled with guests and people standing around each table and chairs pulled back from the tables as they will be during your entrance. Typically, a well run facility will assign server(s) to the head table and possibly the family tables and they will be your contact person throughout your reception. Ask if that head server will be in the room the entire night or if they will be leaving after dinner. Another thing to look at is where your entertainment will be setting up. Is it near the dance floor? Where will their speakers go? Many banquet facilities do not leave enough room for a typical DJ to setup in. Many even expect the DJ to setup their speakers so that they have to project music across a couple tables worth of guests (your grandparents won't like that as that is typically the grandparents table). If you have a large number of people in your wedding party, you might want to tier the head table to allow for more access to the dance floor for your DJ and their sound gear. Stand where the DJ will be setup. Can they see the cake? Can they see where you will be introduced from and the head table for introductions? It is best if your entertainment is setup along one edge or at the corner of the dance floor (not 20 feet back from the dance floor). How fast is the meal service? There are too many facilities that are slow at serving the meal. Your 7-12 wedding will get less than 2 hours worth of dancing. Ask your DJ about the speed of service. Yes, you do not want to rush your guests eating, but you also do not want to make them wait 30 minutes between each course either. If your guests are just getting desert at 10:30 pm, the chances of having a great time dancing becomes very difficult. With only an hour and a half of dancing, you might get 30 songs to dance to. Other things to consider when checking out a banquet facility - if your reception is over at midnight, can the music play until midnight or do they force the entertainment to end at 10-15 minutes prior? This is becoming more and more common for area banquet facilities. A banquet facility should not run on "bar time" as we typically refer to the practice of bars making last call and ending early to push patrons out prior to the top of the hour. We've even seen high end banquet facilities turn on the lights 10 minutes prior to scare away guests. Strip clearing tables is also a common technique that facilities use to push guests away early. The staff would come around and clear everything off of the tables - all glasses, centerpieces, etc. This is a subtle way to force guests to leave. This is unacceptable. A good facility will wait even 10-15 minutes AFTER the contracted end time before they start clearing. This is proper etiquette. In closing, yes it is important to fall in love with your facility. The feel has to be what you are looking for (romantic, beautiful view, old world charm, etc.) and you should be treated as if they are really interested in your business and your ideas. There are other logistic things to pay attention to and question before your sign on the dotted line. If you're just not sure, call a local wedding vendor (photographer, videographer, disc jockey) and ask them what their experience has been with a particular venue. Ask what to look out for (slow service, lack of staff, etc.) and make sure you get everything in writing from your facility. If they promise to do something for you - it should be part of the contract. Rob Alberti, After Hours Disc Jockey Service, MA/CT/RIhttp://www.afterhoursdj.net
MORE RESOURCES:
|
|
|
|
RELATED ARTICLES
Bridal Shower Themes It is the maid of honor's duty to organize the bridal shower and to ensure that the party is everything the bride expected. The best way to ensure that everyone will have fun is to create a theme around the bridal shower in which everyone can participate in. Nevada Wedding Laws While you may be headed to Las Vegas for a quickie wedding or a prolonged celebration, take time to find out what the law requires before you buy that plane ticket. Each state's laws differ, and many couples get married in Las Vegas because the law allows them to marry quickly. Create A Beautifull Wedding Album With A Simple And Fun Way Hi If you are getting married or have a Bar Bat Mitzvah or special event then you should read this article. Many times people who have an important event hire a photographer, videographer wedding consultants, and or coordinators, florists, lino service, ect. Getting Great Deals on the Wedding Clothes If you are planning to have a full wedding that includes bridesmaids, and groomsmen etc. it could run you a great deal of money to cover your gown as well as the other women and men's clothing as well. The Bachelor Party: A Guide For The Best Man If you forget the ring, there is still a chance that you might be forgiven. If you throw a poor bachelor party, you might as well throw away your friendship. Online Wedding Dress Shopping! Taking the hassle out of finding your perfect and unique wedding dress.Getting married is no longer a case having only two options, church or court house, as it used to be. Family Cycle (I) - Euphoric and Dysphoric Cycles in Marriage Despite all the fashionable theories of marriage, the narratives and the feminists, the reasons to engage in marriage largely remain the same. True, there have been role reversals and new stereotypes have cropped up. Top 5 Wedding Favors and Why WHAT ARE THE TOP FIVE WEDDING FAVORS AND WHY?At most weddings, the bride and groom will offer some type ofsmall memento as a note of appreciation to family and friends,more commonly known as wedding favors. As you will discover inthis article, the type of favors are widely varied but there aresome that are considered better choices than others. The Gracious Bride The key to being a gracious bride is to be genuine, thoughtful and courteous if you can pull this off making sure you have a good time as well as everyone else the day should be memorable.The mixture of personalities from crazy aunt Martha to your best friends new artist boyfriend and your husbands Architect boss make weddings difficult to pull off and wonderfully fun at the same time. Get a Prenuptial Agreement before Your Next Marriage While signing a prenuptial agreement can be one of the all-time romantic turnoffs, for people heading into their second marriage, a prenuptial agreement can give the trade-off of a better relationship through the security of financial and life planning.A prenuptial agreement is a legal contract between two people about to marry, specifying how assets will be distributed in the event of divorce or death. You're Making Your Wedding List and Checking It Twice-What Have You Forgotten? Preparing for a wedding, large or small, is overwhelming! A way to combat that feeling is to break down the required tasks, divide the responsibilities and assign deadlines. Ok, all that is fine-but what have you forgotten?A wedding is a public affair, and it's everyone's fear that somewhere, somehow, despite all the planning, arrangements, expense, and hard work, something will happen to make one or more of the principles appear foolish in public. Wedding Speeches Made Easy: Wedding Speech or Best Mans Speech Tips Have you ever had to give a wedding speech? As the groom or best man?Do you remember that feeling? A knot in the stomach, sweaty palmsand a panic attack!Not a very pleasant experience. And yet, I'm sure your wedding speech has the potential to be a great success because 90 % of a typical audience want the speaker to succeed. Second Marriages. Estate Planning Concerns One of the biggest areas of dispute in estate planning is with second marriages. Here is a question I received. 6 Ways to Save Money on Wedding Invitations Inviting your possible guests on your wedding day can be costly. You have to give them traditional wedding cards to inform them of the date and venue, and possibly those cards are made of elegant or high quality papers and other materials that might cost a lot. How to Have a Sizzler of a Honeymoon. Article No.2 Ah! It's the wedding night. You've cut the cake, drank the toast, danced the dance, and now, at last you are completely alone. Low Budget Wedding Reception The reception alone will bust your wedding budget if you're notcareful. Of course, the most obvious way to save money on thereception is to keep it small. Subtle Danger Signals on the Domestic Front If you've been around long enough, you're aware of the many things that can play havoc with domestic peace, even where the parties concerned are not short of goodwill and have the best of intentions. High up on the list of culprits here are poor communication habits, either on their own or in combination with other negative influences. Diamond Engagement Ring, on Two Months Salary - Maybe Not! Diamond spending - well, that is up to you. What to spend on a diamond is a tough and personal question. Caribbean Honeymoon Vacation - a Fancy Trip! This season, a Caribbean honeymoon vacation will give you unlimited joy. Holidaying in the rich, tropical Caribbean honeymoon resorts is the best way to start a blissful married life for many a couple. Women Sufferings and Infidelity Her dreams of marriage and collected marriage values disintegrate when she finds her husband/partner is sharing with others what was meant for her. The partner is her/his own property and dignity that she does not want to loose.
|
| home | site map | contact us |
